An analysis is presented by the Puerto Rico office of the College Board of the English as a Second Language Achievement Test (ESLAT), which was undertaken to measure the specifications and item content of the examination against the students' performance. The report, based on 400 randomly selected structure items used in one or more versions of…

The implicit definition of competence and the inferential chain that links the standard-setting process to the decision outcomes of the method are considered for two classes of standard-setting procedures: those involving data-free judgments of items and those involving data-based judgment of items. The major underlying assumptions of competence…

A study examined the nature of the questions contained in two major standardized reading comprehension tests in terms of their centrality to the text. It was hypothesized that the use of a discrimination index for item selection would tend to favor relatively trivial questions. Half the reading selections from the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test…

This booklet is intended to help school personnel, parents, students, and members of the community understand concepts and research relating to achievement testing in public schools. The paper's sections include: (1) test use with direct effects on students (test of certification, selection, and placement); (2) test use with indirect effects on…

A review of the literature indicates that the Nelson-Denny Reading Test (NDRT) may be a viable instrument for screening students and predicting their academic success in particular circumstances. In 1981, a study was conducted at Schoolcraft College to determine the extent of the relationship between the reading abilities of entering students and…

As part of the evaluation of a 5-year longitudinal research and development project in individualized language learning, several alternative methods for testing oral English production were tried out. The Bilingual Syntax Measure was selected for adaptation because of the relative effectiveness of its visual component in eliciting responses.…

The primary research problem confronting many experimental researchers is finding valid stimulus (instructional) and criterial (testing) materials that operationally fit their hypotheses. Five experimental studies have been completed, and two are in progress, using the Dwyer instructional materials to address the problem of finding valid…

A common paradigm in measuring the ability to recognize facial expressions of emotion is to present photographs of facial expressions and to ask subjects to identify the emotion. The Affect Blend Test (ABT) uses this method of assessment and is scored for accuracy on specific affects as well as total accuracy. Another method of measuring affect…

The present study: (1) describes the development and make-up of a comprehensive semantic differential measure of school related attitudes for young children; (2) presents evidence for the reliability and the discriminant and convergent validities of the measure; and (3) discusses issues pertaining to the measurement of school-related attitudes in…

The United States Employment Service (USES) Specific Aptitude Test Battery (SATB) for Ticket Agent is evaluated from three points of view: (1) technical adequacy of the research; (2) fairness to minorities; and (3) usefulness of the battery to Employment Service staff and employers in selecting individuals for ticket agent positions. Research…

Change process research had developed some practical tools and concepts which can assist in the determination of essential variables for an evaluation design. The Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) Project at the Texas Research and Development Center in particular has developed specific measures which can be applied directly: "Levels of Use…

This paper reviews seven research studies on the subject of readability. The first study reviewed is itself an extensive review of 30 readability formulas described by George A. Klare. Of these, five formulas considered to be interesting, unusual, or classic on the basis of high validity, simplicity or complexity, common or uncommon variables, and…

A study was conducted to test the reliability and validity of the Intimate Coding System (INCS)--an instrument designed to code verbal conversation in intimate relationships. Subjects, 34 married couples, completed Spanier's Dyadic Adjustment Scale, which elicited information about relational adjustment and satisfaction in intimate couples in…

Two studies were performed with Puerto Rican children and adolescents in Puerto Rico and Connecticut to determine the reliability and predictive validity of the Spanish translation of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised, the Escala de Inteligencia Wechsler para Ninos-Revisada (EIWN-R). Results suggest that the EIWN-R is a reliable…

This study was undertaken to assess the accuracy of principals' judgments of the effectiveness of the teachers they supervise. Each of 46 principals was asked to fill out a brief form judging the overall effectiveness of each of the teachers in his or her school. The form asked how effective the teacher was in performing three roles: (1) promoting…